telepresence

LAS VEGAS--Cisco Systems will soon be testing a home version of its TelePresence video conferencing product, the company said Wednesday from the Consumer Electronics Show here.

Cisco, which is the world's largest supplier of networking equipment, has been selling videoconferencing equipment to large companies for the past few years.

Now the company plans to provide consumers with a similar video conferencing experience at home. The telepresence system will use consumers' existing high-definition TV sets and broadband Internet connections.

Cisco plans to begin testing the home version of its telepresence product with Verizon Communications in the U.S. later this … Read more

The current health care crisis has some experts saying that telemedicine's time has finally come.

While technology companies have been touting the use of virtual technology to allow doctors to remotely examine and monitor patients for decades, up until recently the business case for deploying these expensive systems was hard to justify. But now as lawmakers in Washington, D.C. look for ways to fix the broken health care system, technologies, such as high-definition video conferencing and telepresence, are getting a second look.

Last week, technology giant Cisco Systems and a major U.S. insurer UnitedHealth Group announced a … Read more

As 2008 draws to a monotonous close, there is still a sliver of time left for me to make my 2009 networking predictions. Yes, money will be as tight as a Minnesota Senate race next year, but there certainly will be a number of bright spots. Here is my list of 10 technology areas to watch in 2009 (in no particular order):

Managed network services. Unlike other IT infrastructure areas (servers, storage, security equipment) large and small organizations have been buying network services for years (think Frame Relay, Centrex, etc.). This comfort level will persuade frugal chief information officers to … Read more

I had business on the East Coast this week which kept me from heading out to California for Cisco's C-Scape Global Forum 2008. However, twitter offered me the opportunity to "eavesdrop" on some of the back-channel chatter at the event.  Unsurprisingly, there was apparently lots of talk about video and collaboration enabled by video.

Unsurprising because this has been a drum that Cisco's been beating for a few years now. And for good reason. Cisco makes networking infrastructure. Video consumes networking infrastructure. So, if you're Cisco CEO John Chambers, that makes video a very … Read more

The online video revolution has begun, and Cisco Systems says it has designed a new strategy complete with new products to help its customers meet the demand.

On Monday, the company, which makes devices that shuttle traffic around the Internet, will announce a new architecture and strategy to help its customers better handle video traffic on their network. CEO John Chambers will be pushing the new architecture and initiative at the company's annual C-Scape press and analyst conference in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday.

It's no secret that Cisco thinks that video is a big deal. The company … Read more

NEW YORK--Cisco Systems is teaming up with the New York Yankees to offer baseball fans an interactive experience at the ballpark and eventually bring that experience to their living rooms.

At a press conference in Manhattan on Tuesday, Cisco CEO John Chambers unveiled details of a new network the company is building for the Bronx Bombers to help them integrate voice, video, and data into their new stadium, which is set to open in April 2009.

The new network, which is costing the New York Yankees about $15 million to $16 million to build, will bring high-definition video throughout the … Read more

During Tuesday's quarterly earnings call with analysts, Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers mentioned in passing that orders of the company's telepresence units were up 500 percent year over year.

Considering the scope of Cisco's $10.4 billion in sales during the second quarter, this qualifies as relative chump change. The list price for the company's typical telepresence configuration is $299,000. Also, there's a difference between the way Cisco books orders and sales.

Tech CEOs tend to lay it on a bit thick when talking up the bright spots in their business, and Chambers naturally … Read more

Network equipment maker Cisco Systems introduced a simpler, cheaper version of its high-end video conferencing system on Monday.

The new Telepresence System 500 is a less expensive version of the telepresence product Cisco launched in 2006. Cisco's telepresence system was developed using high-definition screens and cameras, array speakers, and high-speed Internet connections to provide crystal clear video conferences that could replace the need for executives to travel halfway around the world to meet with colleagues, partners, or customers. The idea is that if companies can conduct business virtually they can save a whole lot of money on traveling.

Video … Read more

Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers is joining the virtual stage with Nobel laureate and former Vice President Al Gore on Wednesday morning to talk about climate change and technology innovation.

Chambers and Gore will use Cisco's telepresence system to communicate with a live audience at the VoiceCon trade show in in Orlando, Fla. They will discuss how unified communications technology, like the telepresence platform, can play a role in reducing carbon emissions, which are impacting climate change.

They'll also discuss other ideas for how businesses can reduce greenhouse gas emissions through innovative technologies and how the technology industry … Read more